Materials matter in the

Our top six bathrooms have much in common, particularly when it comes to neutral tones. Colleen Hawkes reports.

The distinct lack of colour in our top bathrooms may have people hankering for the salmon pink and avocado green of the 1980s – but please no, we’re just kidding. Today, it’s all about the materials, not colour. The interest comes through the grain of timber, the pattern of stone, or the simple beauty of dark, neutral tiles. And no, most of these are not inexpensive bathrooms.

So, in the interests of maintaining a balance, we have included one bathroom with a touch of colour, courtesy of Amy Moore and Stu Watts on The Block NZ: Firehouse. They went with a brickred, tiled accent in an otherwise white bathroom, which was just what was needed in a darkish basement apartment.

But it’s the high-end bathrooms that really impress this year, starting with the chocolate marble tones of a Tida award-winning bathroom designed by Jennie Dunlop of Dunlop Design in Auckland.

This master suite is in a luxury clifftop apartment designed to make the most of sweeping harbour views. The awards judges noted how the selection of rich, milk chocolate-toned tiles creates an immediate impact, and the light grey and white veining in these tiles complements other elements in the room.

‘‘A floating, light-toned vanity with subtle LED lighting, undermounted basins and mirrored cabinetry creates a softer ambience, while the freestanding, organic-shaped bath brings a quirky touch to the overall design.’’

Another stunning bathroom that caught our eye was the master en suite in a Queenstown home by Summerhill Construction, which won several awards in the Registered Master Builders House of the Year awards. The interiors are by McKenzie & Willis Interior Design.

The piece de resistance of this bathroom is the free-standing slipper bathtub with a mirror-finish exterior, positioned beside the shuttered window so the owners can enjoy the view.

Other key features of the bathroom include white subway tiles with a black dado line and skirting tiles, and old-style steel fixtures in keeping with the traditional feel.

Our top six list also includes a bathroom designed by NKBA awards first-time entrant, Michelle Quinn of Lume Design, in Christchurch. Quinn won the Supreme Bathroom Design Award and five additional awards for a master en suite in a Waimairi beach house.

Manufacturer Lyall Park Joinery was also a Supreme winner.

Quinn’s winning bathroom features timberlook tiles that provide rich tones and grain changes – the look is replicated in the joinery.

Pearl-coloured tiles complement the use of concrete and oxidised metals throughout the rest of the home. They also provide a light, fresh backdrop for the timber and accents of blackened steel.

The bathroom in another Master Builders’ award-winning house also made our list. This en suite is in the massive, 750-square-metre Cantilever House in Havelock North, designed by Sumich Chaplin and built by Redmond Builders.

This house took out numerous awards, including East Coast Supreme House of the Year and the Plumbing World Bathroom Excellence award. The en suite bathroom features the extensive use of travertine, a material that appears throughout the house, inside and out.

There is also a free-standing tub bathed in natural light in front of a floor-to-ceiling window.

The powder room in this house features a long cylindrical basin and floor-mounted filler.

A bathroom in a new Arrowtown house makes our list. This NZIA award-winning house by RTA Studio was also shortlisted in the World Architecture Festival.

Bold, textural materials on the house exterior help to ‘‘ground’’ the house in the landscape, and the dark, moody feel is continued in the bathroom.

Here again, there’s a mix of materials, with dark-stained slatted timber on the ceiling, and dark, stone tiles on the walls – even the tapware has a raw, earthy look.